Category Archives: Liberal Democrats
What’s this charge cap really going to cost? (1000th blog)
Ringing out the old and ringing in the new should be managed with a little more responsibility than the approach adopted by the DWP through their dodgy Impact Assessment Continue reading
NEST Insight; what the 11m+ “unpensioned” think.
NEST has produced a chunky report that “takes the temperature of automatic enrolment”. This promises to be the first of a series and as the first has five years of accumulated insights to lay before us. I thoroughly recommend it … Continue reading
Posted in auto-enrolment, corporate governance, customer service, David Pitt-Watson, First Actuarial, leadership, Liberal Democrats, napf, NEST, Payroll, pensions, Personal Accounts, Retirement
Tagged Cassandra, Employment, Financial services, Government, National Employment Savings Trust, pension, Steve Webb, Tim Jones
8 Comments
Steve Webb’s good week
Now anyone who can talk of a “regulatory regime which allows 1000 flowers to bloom” has got to have been taking the happy pills. Continue reading
Posted in annuity, auto-enrolment, dc pensions, defined aspiration, Liberal Democrats, Management, NEST, pension playpen, pensions, Popcorn Pensions, Treasury
Tagged Defined benefit pension plan, Department for Work and Pensions, DWP, National Employment Savings Trust, pension, Pensions Management Institute, Ros Altmann, Steve, Steve Webb, Tesco, UK State Pension, Webb
17 Comments
Can we have a word Mr Webb?
You mentioned that there should be a default position (on mallowstreet). I have argued that there is a default decumulation position, it is a level single life annuity provided by the insurer that managed your pension accumulation. This is a “pot-luck” position and many are buying appalling annuities as a result. This is at the root of what we, Robin Ellison, Con Keating, Alan Higham , the AMNT and Kevin Wesbroom, (to name but a handful of those calling for change), are trying to address. Continue reading
Posted in annuity, auto-enrolment, corporate governance, customer service, dc pensions, de-risking, Fiduciary Management, Liberal Democrats, NEST, Nick Clegg, pension playpen, pensions, Personal Accounts, Retirement
Tagged Civil service, Con Keating, Derek, Dutch, Dutch people, Government, Life annuity, pension, Pension Protection Fund, Steve Webb
14 Comments
Pension Equality? Don’t make me laugh.
Great news, – a group of civil servants (the National Audit Office) have decided to audit the work of another group of civil servants (the Pension Regulator) reporting to another group of civil servants (the DWP). The point of the audit is … Continue reading
Posted in annuity, Bankers, corporate governance, dc pensions, de-risking, Liberal Democrats, Martin Lewis, NEST, pension playpen, pensions, Retirement
Tagged Civil service, Defined benefit pension plan, Department for Work and Pensions, DWP, National Audit Office, pension, Pension Regulator, Private sector, Steve Webb
11 Comments
A necessary strike
If there’s one area of consensus among the politicians this morning, it’s that the national pensions strike called for today (30th November) is unnecessary and something this country can ill afford. I disagree – this is a necessary strike, not … Continue reading
Treasury 1 DWP 0 (Steve Webb o.g. 89 minutes)
I wouldn’t like to be Steve Webb this afternoon. Having protested for the past few weeks that the DWP‘s auto-enrolment timeline was carved in stone, we learn today that employers with 3000 or less employees (for details follow this link!) will have another year or so to … Continue reading
Ah- Vested Self Interest – that’s alright then!
We have a brace of fine headlines this week – Citywire report that Standard Life believe that ISAs should be part of the auto-enrolment mechanism and some SRI peddlar is reported on twitter extolling the need for auto-enrolment to include some seriously socially responsible investment. No … Continue reading
Posted in corporate governance, customer service, dc pensions, de-risking, Liberal Democrats, NEST, pensions, Retirement, Treasury, twitter
Tagged AMC, Goldman Sachs, Government, Greece, Jesus Christ, pension, Standard Life, Steve Webb
1 Comment
Unavoidable, necessary and futile – the fight for public sector pensions
Because the unions only speak for those they define as their own – they do not speak for me – nor I for them. Continue reading
Posted in dc pensions, Liberal Democrats, NEST, Nick Clegg, pensions, Retirement
Tagged Bryn Davies, Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Danny Alexander, dc pensions, Dorset, Dorset County Council, Economics, John Denham, Labour, Liberal Democrats, Liberal Party of Canada, Methodism, NEST, Nick Clegg, Pension new, Pension Poverty, pensions, Politics, Public Sector Pensions, Retirement, Society, Tony Benn, Trade union
1 Comment
Clegg4pm- strange things happen.
There is a very real possibility that Nick Clegg will become our next prime minister – albeit with no overall majority. Whether he will comes down to whether voters will retain their current sense of adventure or take fright at the prospect of something quite new. Continue reading